Sonic Guardians
by Flyinpenguin117
Summary: Sonic/Destiny crossover. Wrote 4 chapters, then gave up and summarized the rest. Technically complete.
1. Chapter 1- Awakening

An errant wind blew across the mountains, tugging at the Echidna's hair. He disregarded it, continuing to stand vigilant over the Master Emerald, as he always had.

It had been 3 months since the Metarex were defeated. Knuckles hoped everything would return to normal. He went back to his usual duty, which was normal enough for him. Sonic and Eggman continued to spar with each other- for awhile, at least. Eggman hadn't even been seen in almost 2 months. Knuckles just thought he was planning something big and wanted nothing to do with it. It had also been awhile since he had seen Tails. Rouge had temporarily stopped harassing him, as she was searching for Eggman, still believing he knew Shadow's whereabouts. As long as she left him alone, it was fine by him.

But staring over the forests before him, something seemed... odd. He couldn't quite place his finger on it. Maybe the past months had changed him. Being sent to another dimension, fighting an alien empire and preventing the destruction of the universe... everything seemed rather boring now.

_Maybe this is what Sonic feels like,_ he mused. _He can't hold still for more than a few seconds._

A few seconds passed in an eternity.

Then he saw something. A sphere of blue lightning, hovering above the ground, just a few meters in front of him. Knuckles was oddly attracted to it. Cautiously, slowly, he descended the stone stairs leading up to the Master Emerald and approached the glowing ball. It began to grow more intense, and a black shroud began forming around it. He leapt back just as it made a blinding flash, and he was thrown to the ground.

Knuckles dragged himself to his feet, and turned around to see a large robot facing him, several meters away. It was at least six times as tall as him, with long, thin limbs connected to a rather disproportionate body. A faint purple Aura surrounded it, and it had a single red eye that stared straight towards him. Several tense seconds passed.

Then Knuckles noticed the large gun in its right hand.

"Eggman," he muttered, and leapt straight towards it, fist raised. He made contact, only for a magnetic force to launch him right back. He flipped through the air and landed on his feet, and noticed that the aura surrounding the robot glowed brighter. Undeterred, he ran towards the robot again as it started shooting at him, large purple orbs sailing through the air and detonating around him, throwing him off balance. He once again made a lunge for it, swung his fist- and it sailed through thin air.

He had lost sight of it, as if it had disappeared into thin air. Then he heard an awful, robotic shriek coming from behind him, and he wheeled about just to see the colossus swing its arm, making contact and sending him flying. He slammed into the ground, but managed to get back up.

Now he was on the defense, running as fast as he could, just trying to avoid whatever this thing was throwing at him and comprehend the situation. _Lets see. It can't be hurt- it has a shield of some sort. It can teleport._ _Its strong, and it has a big gun._

After a few laps of just running in circles, however, his patience wore thin.

_ And I'm sure it'll die if I just punch it enough,_ he thought, and once again charged.

* * *

><p><em>In the distant future<em>

A lone Sparrow speeder bike shot across the jungles of Venus, following a makeshift trail just along the edge of the Shattered Coast in the Ishtar Sink. The Guardian piloting it ignored the potshots taken towards her from Fallen scouts and Vex constructs.

She was looking for something.

"You sure it's around here?" she asked.

A robotic voice sounded in her head. "Almost positive. Our information on the Vault is dated and vague, but it should be somewhere along this trail. Keep following it for... Look out!"

A large, stationary Vex gun platform, called a Cyclops, suddenly materialized straight ahead of her. Its eye glowed with energy, and a bolt of void plasma fired straight towards the Guardian. With barely any time to react, she stood up and hurled herself off the bike just before the bolt made contact with the ground beneath her. The shockwave wrecked her Sparrow and knocked her off-balance. Tumbling through the air, she focused her Light away from the metal monster.

A split second later, she teleported to the ground, landing rather ungracefully, sprawled out on her back along the side of the cliff just about 10 meters from her enemy. The Cyclops fired at her again, and she let herself fall just before an explosion went off where she was a fraction of a second ago. Grabbing onto a rock outcropping, she took a second to regain her bearings before triggering the thrusters in the ankles of her boots, shooting upwards. She flipped through and landed squarely on her feet, facing the Cyclops, scout rifle drawn. A horde of bipedal Goblins had warped around it, and they began firing at her.

She returned fire, aiming for the exposed power core in their stomach and narrowly dodging the projectiles hurtling towards her. A few of the robots exploded before the Cyclops sent out another shot. She once again teleported, this time a more coordinated blink, sending her behind a rock well out of the blast radius.

She swapped out her magazine and cycled the bolt before vaulting on top of the rock. She put several more shots towards a Goblin, causing it to shut down and keel over. The Guardian then leapt down, just as the Cyclops shot at the rock she was on, shattering it. She charged straight forward, gun ablaze. The Vex returned fire, most of their shots simply being deflected off her shields. Three of them threw grenades right in her path. Triggering her boot's thrusters, she shot into the air, dodging the grenades and retaliating with an arc grenade of her own. She hurled the grenade before blinking backwards, trading ground for viable cover behind another boulder. The arc grenade landed in the center of the Vex and took a quick scan of the area. It then sent a bolt of lightning out, which chained between three more of the Goblins, overloading their systems and destroying them.

The Hunter quickly peeked out of cover. Only a few Goblins left- and still that Cyclops. She holstered her scout rifle. This would take a bit more firepower.

Focusing every ounce of Light and willpower into her raised hand, it manifested as a brilliant Golden Gun made of pure Light. Wheeling out of cover, she placed a shot straight into the eye of the Cyclops, interfering with its targeting and causing a Void bolt to be shot into the air, drastically missing its target. Another shot pierced it, and it went haywire, spitting Void bolts all around and destroying most of the remaining Goblins. One final shot fully pierced it, and it violently exploded, scattering its debris across the area.

The assailants dealt with, the Guardian's supernatural weapon dissolved. After gazing at her handiwork for a few seconds, a small, floating, star-like robot materialized next to her. "I like admiring art as much as the next Ghost, but can we keep going?"

"Thats so like you, Ghost. You never take time to enjoy the little things in life." She pulled off her hood, and removed her helmet. "Like a pile of dead Vex."

She had short, untidy brown hair and unusually bright blue eyes. Red paint marked a wide X across the center of her face. She wore a slight, ambitious smile, and was rather sweaty and dirty, clearly showing days, if not weeks, of intense exploration in the unforgiving forests on Venus.

Her scouting armor was of Rustburner make, being almost entirely white and grey, with limited armor plates allowing for a fair mixture of resilience and mobility. The helmet had an atmospheric filter, and was connected to nutrient and adrenaline supplements stored in her armor, allowing for continued, uninterrupted exploration in toxic environments without rest, food, or water. Her Atropos-style hooded cloak was pure white, matching her armor, and was gridmarked with triangles. The rear of the cloak angled to one side, only covering half of her back. The Scout Rifle strapped to her back was an advanced model, issued by the Vanguard to their most elite Guardians.

She began walking towards the ruined Vex ahead of her, removing her cloak.

"...really? Is that a priority right now?" the Ghost asked, floating along behind her.

"You know the rules- 'First, check your cloak for damage. Second, inspect yourself for major wounds.'"

Although her armor clearly showed signs of wear and tear, her cloak was nearly pristine. Cloaks were more than just decorative cloth, they were a symbol- a unifying symbol of Hunters, of individuality, and of companionship. Its often said, 'When a Hunter takes up the cloak of a fallen comrade, this is a vow.' Hunters cared for their cloaks more than anything- except, maybe, their Ghosts.

"Well," her Ghost continued, "your Sparrow is wrecked. It will be a little while before I can Transmat a new one. Looks like we're walking the rest of the way."

"Fair enough." Satisfied that her cloak was intact, the Guardian threw it back on, though she left her helmet off and the hood down. _Only a few bruises. Still, that was a pretty sloppy fight_, she thought, then smirked. _Well, maybe 'massacre' is the correct term._

"Incoming transmission from the Vanguard," said the Ghost. "Patching you through now." The Guardian sighed and put her helmet back on her head.

"_Hey Sapphire, Cayde-6 here, just wanted an update on your status. Been a couple days_." The transmission was somewhat broken and static-y, but the familiar, friendly voice of the Exo Hunter Vanguard was still audible.

"Yeah, this is Sapphire," the Guardian said back. "Just ran into a Cyclops." Sapphire observed the wreckage in front of her. "Nothing I couldn't handle."

"_So you haven't found anything? Not even the Vault?_"

"No, but I might be getting close. I'll contact you if I find it."

"_Alright. Let us know if something unusual comes up. We need to find what made the Vex go on the offensive, and they're most at home on Venus. _

"I know, Cayde."

"_And what's your status?_"

"I'm fine. Been scavenging for ammo, nutrient supplements are running low, but I still have them. No major injuries. I can probably stay out for at least three more days, if I can find food. I'm gonna be heading into a dark zone in a few, so don't be worried if I drop out of touch for awhile."

"_Glad I caught you when I did, then. I'll be on my way." _responded Cayde. "_Oh, and uh, one more thing... be on the lookout for another Guardian, possibly operating in the same area."_

Sapphire stopped walking. "...whats so special about this Guardian?" There hadn't been any recent reports of missing Guardians in her area, and most could fend for themselves or seek her out anyways...

_Unless..._

"_You'll know him when you see him. Cayde-6 out_."

Sapphire paused for a minute. She knew what Cayde-6 meant. He had a thing for Legends. Before being saddled with Tower duty, he had been hunting for the Vault of Glass, just as she was now.

"Oh no," said her Ghost.

But there was one particular Legend. Even the Warlocks dismissed it sheerly as preposterous rumor, less credible than stories of the Exo Stranger. But Cayde-6 believed it. Stories of an ancient, legendary Guardian.

He came before the Collapse. Some say he caused it. Others say he's trying to prevent it.

He had an unusual interest in the Vex. Reports of him were highest in areas where Vex were active.

He was the first Guardian, or an Agent of the Darkness

Immortal.

Invincible.

"Please tell me he couldn't mean..."

Sapphire whispered. _"_The Black Guardian."

* * *

><p>Knuckles narrowly dodged another series of blasts from the construct and delivered another blow to it. This time anticipating the shield's effect, he hit the ground and immediately sprung towards it again. The robot teleported forward several meters, and Knuckles missed. He wheeled about and struck again. Its shield nearly depleted, it raised its hand and swung towards him. Knuckles ducked and attempted another upwards strike. It countered by bringing its own fist straight down, slamming into Knuckles and blocking the attack. Knuckles struggled to hold its weight above him, surprised by its own physical strength. He made one final move, forcing its arm aside and making an uppercut straight at its head.<p>

The shield finally broke, and its head shattered. Knuckles landed behind it, smiling and turning around to face it. The robot stood, electricity crackling over its surface. He waited for it to fall over, defeated. But after a few seconds, it still stood, then turned towards Knuckles again

"You've gotta be kidding me."

It let out a horrible, enraged shriek. Knuckles prepared to once again attack-

-then a blue blur shot ahead of him and tore clean through his adversary, shearing it in half at the waist.

Already knowing what was coming, he groaned in frustration.

"C'mon, Knucks. We've beat bigger things before."

Sonic was leaning against a tree, wearing his typical grin.

"I didn't ask for your help, Sonic. I had that fight," he growled.

"Well, then I just sped up the process. No need to get mad."

"What do you want?" Knuckles had run out of patience.

"Just a little help, thats all." Sonic dashed up to the wreckage and leaned up against it. "These things have been showing up for days. Thought I could get someone who could hold his own in a fight. I might've been wrong for choosing you," he teased.

"And what are they?" Knuckles looked closer at it, disregarding Sonic's disparaging comment.

"Thats the problem. I don't know. Noone does. They just came out of nowhere."

"So were they made by-"

"-Eggman? Probably."

"Then why don't you go find him yourself?" Knuckles started returning to the Master Emerald. The robot dematerialized, and Sonic fell to the ground.

"Look. I know you're not a huge fan of following me around on these things." Knuckles turned to face Sonic, whose tone had become oddly serious. The hedgehog pulled himself off the ground and dusted himself off, his smile gone. "But these things... whatever they are, they're just... I don't know." He looked at the burned spot on the ground, shaking his head. "I don't see how Eggman could've gotten so many. They show up everywhere. There's entire armies of them."

"Whats the point?"

He faced Knuckles again. "They're pure evil. I saw them level an entire town. Killed everyone who didn't escape. Then they left like it was nothing." Sonic swallowed hard and closed his eyes. Knuckles could tell that, whatever he saw, it was horrible.

"I tried to save everyone... Pointless mass murder isn't like Eggman. But if he's responsible for this..." he paused for a moment.

"I need your help." Sonic's eyes shot open.

Knuckles sighed. He couldn't stand having innocent people hurt.

"Maybe I can leave the Master Emerald for a few days-"

"Alright! Lets go!" Sonic took off in a flash.

"DAMMIT SONIC!" Knuckles ran after him, off on another unwanted adventure. _This is gonna suck._

* * *

><p>You have no idea, Knuckles. What comes next is shooting, stabbing, shooting, time travel, space magic, shooting, romance, betrayal, shooting, alternate realities, shooting, shooting, and SPOILER ALERT Tails getting killed (I'll let you decide which of those are serious)<p>

Anyways, heres the first chapter of my Destiny crossover. Also the first thing I've ever actually written and published. I want this to actually be a good story, so go ahead and give an honest review. Don't just complement me for being able to put words in a box (but don't dis it just because you hate Destiny or Sonic or Penguins or what-have-you)

Thanks to FroZenHyBrid on Sonic Fanon Wiki for prereading.

Chapter 2 is in the works. You'll learn a little more about Guardians and the Vex (I suppose you could Google it, or you've played Destiny, but wheres the fun in that?)

That is all. For now...


	2. Chapter 2- The Vex

The X-Tornado touched down and Tails leapt out. Sonic had asked him to meet at one of Eggman's old bases after getting Knuckles to help. It was strange that Tails had beat him there, even with his aircraft.

He took a good look around. The place was a robot graveyard. The wreckage of both Eggman's robots and the invaders littered the ground. It must have been invaded days ago. Save for a quiet breeze, it was silent.

Tails felt uneasy. Extremely uneasy. He wished Sonic was there- maybe at least he'd feel a bit safer. Looking around, he saw nothing, but somehow, it felt like he was being... watched. He was distracted when he noticed one of the alien robots on the ground before him. Many others were lying around, but this one looked largely intact, and yet still dead.

Against his better judgement, the curious fox walked over to it. He knelt next down and began prodding at its remains. He had seen similar ones before- it seemed this particular build was the most common. They stood about twice as tall as him, and their cases were made of a bronze-like substance. He ran his hand over its unnaturally cold surface. In the center of it, there was a glowing cell, possibly a power core, or central processor. The fan-shaped head was badly damaged, bent at an awkward angle and barely holding on to the main body. Its single eye, normally a bright, yet ominous red, was turned off. He cautiously touched the joints in its battered neck and rotated it around, attempting to get a look at its intricate machinery.

The light in its eye flickered. Tails barely had time to notice.

The machine leapt up and latched itself onto his arm. Tails cried out in panic and began desperately struggling against it. Even in its severely damaged state, its grip was too strong to break free.

The construct brought itself to its feet, dangling Tails in front of it. Its mangled, crooked head stared straight at this foreign creature, studying as it flailed in its grasp.

_NETWORK DAMAG%##%#%%**_

_MIN.../COR3...!_

_COMPUT.^^_

_ACTION INDEPEN6*&77&^%$_

_EXTERM18e^X_

_ANOMALY_

_11010001001110100_

Tails could see it raise its palm towards him, which reconfigured into some sort of small gun. He quickly kicked its outstretched hand as it discharged, sending a short-ranged shockwave into the air above him. Tails brought another kick to the arm holding him. The robot dropped him and staggered backwards before toppling over again. Before it could get back up, Tails brought his foot down on its core, shattering the barrier containing it. A strange, luminescent fluid sprayed out and it shut down.

Shaken, but unharmed, Tails slowly walked back from the dead construct, his shoe covered in the unusual liquid. Disgusted, he tried wiping it off on the grass, unsuccessfully. After a few moments, he gave up, and began walking back to the X-Tornado, keeping a close eye on all of the other supposedly dead robots. Needless to say, he didn't want to risk anything else here being alive. Not while he was alone.

_Alone._

He paused, one hand on his aircraft.

'_Remember I'll always be with you.._.'

"No! Not now..." Tails closed his eyes, choking back tears. He always remembered at the worst times.

"Hey Tails! Where ya goin'?"

_Perfect timing, Sonic. Thanks._

The blue hedgehog dashed up to greet Tails. Knuckles was (relatively) close behind. Tails subtly wiped his eyes dry and put on a half-hearted smile.

"Hey Sonic. I wasn't going anywhere, I was just waiting for you." He motioned to the robot he killed moments ago. "Don't worry, I'm not hurt," he said upon seeing Sonic's concerned face.

"So now that we're here," Knuckles interrupted, "what do we do now?"

Sonic looked around. "I guess we start searching the place."

Tails pointed the group to a bunker in the center of the fort. "The computer mainframe is probably in there. Its a good start." He went into the X-Tornado and dug out an arc welder. They went to the locked blast door, and Tails cut through it before Knuckles pried it open. He hid the welder by the door to pick up later.

The team went down a short flight of stairs, leading to a long, dark hallway. The only lighting was flickering backup lights. Once their eyes adjusted, they saw more wreckage of Eggman's robots.

"Thats strange," began Tails as they slowly walked down the hallway. "It looks like they were cornered, but the door was locked."

"Whatever those other robots are, it looks like they can teleport," replied Knuckles.

Sonic kicked one of their severed heads as they passed. It bounced several meters before coming to rest. Its dead eye was fixed directly on him.

_The thing glared at him. Its red eye pierced the darkness, watching, calculating. The fires of the buildings cast a gleam over its armor. Soon Sonic saw another eye. Then another. Gradually, they all turned around until the entire legion was facing him._

_And for a moment, Sonic felt nothing._

"Hey Sonic, keep up!" called Knuckles from around a corner, snapping Sonic out of his memory. He glanced down the hall, then back at the head, then crushed it beneath his foot before moving along.

By the time he caught up to them, they had already found the central computer and Tails was busy hacking away at it.

He was done in seconds. "Hm. Easier than I thought. Eggman didn't put many security measures in place."

"So what does it say?" asked Sonic. "Anything about how he controls these things?"

"Theres only a few things here. Some pictures, and an audio recording. Hold on, I'll get it playing..."

Tails tapped on the keyboard for another minute, and it played Eggman's all-too-familiar voice.

"_I haven't slept in days. These machines display rather strange capabilities. The last time I slept, I had a dream, which I believe to somehow be the memories of the one that I'm studying. Much of what I saw was hazy, but if nothing else, I know what they're called. Whatever it last fought- which appears to be other humans- called these things 'The Vex.'"_

Tails pulled up some diagrams of these "Vex" that were also on the computer.

"_I've also learned the names of the individual units. The flying ones are called Harpies. They function as scouts, and act as eyes for the whole network. Goblins and Hobgoblins are like their basic infantry. Hobgoblins have advanced optics,mostly exhibited through their role as snipers. They also have a defensive reflex. An impenetrable shield which burns whatever it touches. Any attempts to breach it have been fruitless, as have attempts to replicate the effect._

_This brings us to Minotaurs. Their large case is also protected by an energy field. I've observed them building various structures around the planet, though what those structures are used for is yet to be seen. Finally is Hydras. They're nearly invincible, and further protected by a rotating defense matrix. Attempted mappings of the Vex's computation networks seem to show that they oversee and possibly control other constructs in the area. _

_As for how they fully function and their final goal here, I don't know. Not yet."_

"So even Egghead doesn't know much about these things," said Sonic. _Still not convinced that he's not completely involved._

"It doesn't look like it," said Tails, pausing the recording. He found a map of the planet, which was traced with zigzagged lines. "But it seems like this file was made before the Vex began to show up. Maybe theres more in the recording..."

" _But I have looked into the conduits underground. By using electrical impulses, I mapped the whole network, and discovered that it circumscribes the entire globe. But all tendrils of this network converge on one place. I've called it 'The Nexus,' and began fortifying its location. This network became active as soon as the Vex began appearing, but parts of it were damaged as a result of my experiments._

_This is where things get more than confusing. My experiments were to investigate these conduits, try to find out who built them, how they function. But the discovery was disturbing- the material these were made of, besides being entirely foreign to our world, is older than our own planet._

_I've devised multiple theories, but as of now, theres no way to test them. The most obvious conclusion is, somehow, also the most insane: That the components of this conduit haven't been built yet. That they will be built in the future, and will eventually be taken back in time to our planet- and possibly others- and installed to be awoken when the Vex invade._

_I've run similar dating tests on the material that makes the Vex. Their cases are just as old as the conduits. Wherever they came from is from far across the universe- possibly not even our own, or in our timeline. This means that the Vex can teleport across time and space, easily and en masse, without Chaos Emeralds, hence why they've shown no interest in them. _

_What this potentially means is that whatever power created and controls the Vex is far greater than any power I've seen. Under any other circumstances, I'd begin hunting for it. But the way these Vex behave- and the apparent effects they have on my mind- is enough to drive me away from it. I don't even want to touch them anymore, much less control or reverse engineer them."_

"Thats insane," said Knuckles. "Not only do they have a power greater than the Chaos Emeralds, its so dark even Eggman wants nothing to do with it..."

"_But there are more pressing matters at hand. The Vex are beginning a large offensive across the whole planet, and possibly other time periods. As such, I'm abandoning all other bases and sending all available robots to the Nexus, which I'm forced to assume is where their goal lies. To protect whats left, small detachments will defend the remaining bases. A tracking program will let me predict where and when the Vex will teleport next."_

A few seconds passed in an eternity.

A blaring alarm started sounding through the base, and the computer locked down.

"What did you do?!" Knuckles asked Tails.

"I didn't do anything! It just... wait... whats this?"

The tracker that Eggman had designed had picked up signatures.

Sonic turned around. "Uh... guys? We've got company..."

The telltale lightning spheres had appeared down the hallway behind them. As if the Vex knew what they were up to, they were coming for them.

A series of blinding flashes lit up the room.

Sapphire continued walking down the trail which now cut through a shallow rock gorge, rifle drawn. As she walked, she looked around at the ruins scattered across the trails. They all belonged to the Vex, and predated humanity by thousands, if not millions, of years. She paused by a particularly large stone block. The Vex seemed to be obsessed with these blocks. They were scattered all across the solar system. When the Vex began appearing on the planet, these geometric stones would gradually morph into machines, but their purpose was unknown. It was like a strange omen of the planet's fate. Mercury, once a lively garden world, was now a massive, lifeless machine. And if the Vex weren't stopped now, Venus would suffer the same fate, which would also befall Mars and Earth.

"Are we just going to stand here all day?" asked a nervous Ghost. "This is a good spot to get picked off by a Hobgoblin. I don't feel like restoring you this far in enemy territory."

Sapphire disregarded her companion's warning. She'd been dead before, multiple times. Death was simply an occupational hazard in a Guardian's job. So long as a Guardian had their Ghost and their Light, death was far from insurmountable- and really only scary the first time.

Still, the block could only hold her attention for so long, and she kept walking. As she did, she pondered Cayde's unusual directive. The Black Guardian hadn't been sighted in centuries. It was doubtful he (she? it?) even existed. What were the odds of finding him, just out on Venus? Was he even a Guardian? Legend says he serves the Darkness...

"Guardian?" Ghost broke her train of thought. "Theres a clearing up ahead. I'm picking up some Vex signatures."

Sapphire gazed down the trail aways. There was a large area cut into the rock face, though she could only see the corners. She ran up to one, and held still for a moment.

In a brief flash of light, her armor's invisibility capabilities activated, and she vanished. Steeling herself, she rounded the corner, weapon raised.

Several quick visual scans, and nothing. Not a single Vex. Her camouflage disabled and she lowered her rifle. Looking around more, she started taking in the details of the place. There were a large amount of Vex ruins, some of which were morphed into machine blocks. Several inactive portal frames were scattered about. A path made sort of a walkway wrapping around the clearing, and in the center was a large, bronze door. The realisation hit her like a Hive Ogre.

"This is the Vault of Glass," she said quietly and summoned Ghost.

"It matches the old descriptions. Let me look around." It flew from its perch in her hand and began scanning objects of particular interest.

Sapphire herself began to walk about the area. The path leading to the Vault began to the left of where she stood. After walking up to a short flight of stairs, leading to a platform made of Vex ruins, she stopped to analyze an unusual circle engraved in the ground. Kneeling down, she gently touched the ground inside, trying to sense something, anything. Her gauntlets had a neural interface that allowed her to feel as if it were her skin. But there was nothing. The ground was just solid and unremarkable.

Unsatisfied, she continued to follow the path up to the Vault itself. The door was huge, at least 10 meters tall, and built into the rock face. She noticed another circle on the ground before it.

The Ghost floated back up to her. "Theres another plate on the ground over there," he said, gesturing towards the final segment of the path. "But it looks like everything here is inactive. Some faint Vex signatures from those plates, but thats it."

Sapphire and the Ghost studied the door. There was an elaborate contraption built into the center- some sort of lock. "They're probably how you open the Vault."

"Its been sealed for centuries. They say the last time the Vault opened, it released unspeakable evil," said her Ghost, turning to face her. "Take that as a hint."

"I don't think I could open it, even if I wanted to. Mark the coordinates and lets move on."

"Don't you think we should report back to the Tower? Even if the Vault is still sealed, this is a huge find. The Cryptarchs will be all over this."

Sapphire started walking back. "We still have orders. And I said I could stay out for a few days."

"You mean that ghost chase Cayde sent us on?" Ghost grudgingly, but dutifully, followed her. "The Black Guardian is a legend. Even if it wasn't, what are the odds that-"

They froze. Standing below the ledge, well away from them, was a figure wearing black armor, watching them.

"You have got to be kidding me..."

"HEY!" Yelled Sapphire, waving to him. The Black Guardian dashed off in an instant at an unusually fast pace.

Sapphire leapt over the edge (using her boots' thrusters to slow her descent) and sprinted to where the Guardian was a moment ago. A glance down the trail showed nothing- he was gone. She let out a frustrated sigh and looked down. Something caught her attention.

Where the mysterious figure was a moment ago, there was a distinctive burn mark in the ground. Gently running her fingers over it, it still felt warm. Looking further up the path, there was another one, just a few feet away. The pattern continued as far as she could see.

"Ghost," she asked, "where does this trail go?"

"It leads North. Right to the Vex Citadel. Your Sparrow's ready to go, since I know you'll never listen to me."

"Worth checking out anyways, even if he's not there." Her Ghost synthesized the bike, and she jumped on, kickstarting the engines. "We'll come back later."

Knuckles braced himself and slammed his shoulder full-force into the charging Minotaur, forcing it against the wall and breaking its energy shield. He drove his fist straight through its chest and threw its dead shell into a nearby Goblin. Sonic dashed past them and spun into another Goblin. A Hobgoblin warped behind the two, and Tails leapt up and kicked it to the ground. It rolled over, stood up, and raised its gun towards him. Tails grabbed the long rifle and twisted it out of its hands. Knuckles charged in and knocked the robot back into the wall, shattering it.

They ran back down the hall and rounded a corner, where a swarm of Harpies were lying in wait. There was a flurry of movement as they spun open, exposing their twin guns, and the three ducked for cover as a hail of energy bolts saturated the air.

Acting quickly, Sonic sprinted around the corner and immediately threw his legs in front of him, sliding along the ground beneath the Harpies. Once behind them, he spun into them, chaining between three of floating constructs. They let out a shrill chirp as they shattered. The remaining ones turned their focus to Sonic, but Knuckles charged straight for them.

The scouts dealt with, the path ahead was clear. They ran back down the hall and up the stairs. More Hobgoblins stood atop the surrounding buildings, and a Hydra stared them down, backed up my Harpies.

LINKING BATTLE NETWORK

TARGETS IDENTIFIED

SCANNING NETWORK FOR RELATED [INTEL]

ARCHIVES ACCESSED [POST-MORTEM]

..._The machine leapt up and latched itself onto his arm. Tails cried out in panic and began desperately struggling against it. Even in its severely damaged state, its grip was too strong to break free..._

_...Knuckles narrowly dodged another series of blasts from the construct and delivered another blow to it. This time anticipating the shield's effect, he hit the ground and immediately sprung towards it again. The robot teleported forward several meters, and Knuckles missed. He wheeled about and struck again. Its shield nearly depleted, it raised its hand and swung towards him. Knuckles ducked and attempted another upwards strike. It countered by bringing its own fist straight down, slamming into Knuckles and blocking the attack..._

_..."C'mon, Knucks. We've beat bigger things before."..._

PERSISTENT

EXPUNGE ANOMALIES

The Hydra didn't take long to engage them, and scorched the area where they stood with its twin torch hammers.

They quickly dodged its attack and tried to find somewhere to regroup, but wherever they went, more Vex awaited them. Eventually, they decided to retreat back to the bunker.

"I can't get to the X-Tornado," panted Tails. "Not with all those things here."

"We've gotta fight our way out," said Knuckles. "I'll get the big one. Sonic, you keep those snipers off my back. Tails... don't get hurt."

Sonic dashed out the door first and leapt up against a nearby wall, then sprung into the air and spun to the first Hobgoblin. Their gaze distracted, Knuckles ran out and charged the Hydra, dashing left and right to dodge its fire. Once within range, he sprung towards it, only to get caught in its shield and propelled backwards again. A nearby Harpy targeted him, but before it could get a shot, Tails ran in and drove a piece of sharp scrap metal through its eye, and it shattered. He once again ran for cover as two more found him.

Up top, Sonic spun through two more Hobgoblins. One atop another building across the way tried to get a shot on him, but he saw the telltale glare of its charging rifle and dodged the energy bolt. He managed to get a running start and jumped towards it, but it was ready for him. Sonic spun up, collided with the construct...

...and cried in pain as an intense, scorching heat immediately knocked him back. He managed to land on his feet, and saw it bent over and covered in a red aura. The defensive reflex Eggman mentioned. Still, it was only temporary, and Sonic dashed towards it again once it stood up, only for it to teleport behind him. One more attack and he finally wrecked it.

Knuckles continued his brawl with the Hydra. Punch after punch landed, each one only slightly damaging it.

_CALCULATING TRAJECTORY_

_..._

_..._

_DONE_

_EVALUATING NEXT MOVE_

_..._

_DONE_

After leaping upwards to dodge another volley from its cannons, Knuckles delivered a blow straight down on top of it. This one finally managed to crack its case, but the Hydra had already calculated his move. Knuckles clumsily landed between the construct and its defense matrix, limiting his movement options. He tried to claw his way out as the Hydra began curling up, and barely leapt clear as it explosively discharged a powerful force field, knocking him back aways. He landed, rolled, and got back on his feet, and managed to jump away as the Hydra sprayed another salvo of cannon fire at him.

Sonic finished off the last Hobgoblin, throwing its now-headless wreckage off the edge of the building. _Wow. When did I become such a maniac..._

_The air hung heavy with smoke and ash, of both buildings and people. "Monsters," he growled..._

_Oh yeah. Thats when._

He shook it off and jumped back down, spinning into a Harpy that had its eye on Tails, just as he destroyed another one.

_MULTIPLE NETWORK DISRUPTIONSX34%^_

_DAM4G*** INCREAS####_

_ESTABLISHING TRANS-CHRONOLOGICAL LINK_

_[DEUS EX MACHINA]:_

_REQUEST REINFORCEMENTS_

_Assuming direct control._

A few seconds passed in an eternity.

In a flash of light, more Harpies appeared and turned on him. Sonic motioned for Tails to get behind him. Tails could usually hold his own in a fight, but he was nowhere near as experienced as Sonic. He didn't want Tails fighting these things alone (even if it was just the little ones).

The fighting raged on for several more minutes. No matter how many Vex they destroyed, they just kept coming. Another squad of Hobgoblins spawned away from them, and one set its sights on Tails. It charged, and fired, and Tails bent over backwards as the bolt narrowly missed him. Another shot, and he began scrambling backwards, dodging beam after beam. It was too far away to fight, and Sonic was preoccupied with more Harpies. He didn't even notice he had begun straying too close to the Hydra...

Knuckles was getting tired of fighting this thing. Its case was further cracked, and energy seethed down its spine. The damage had made its movements and calculations even more sluggish. Going for the final blow, he charged forward and aimed his fist straight for its eye.

_This vessel is weakened. Severing connection._

_[FUNERAL PYRE] ACTIVATED_

One final, powerful hit, and the machine was knocked back. It glowed brightly as it clattered to the ground, right next to Tails. Smaller explosions covered its shattered exterior.

Knuckles' eyes widened. "TAILS! GET OUT OF THERE!"

Tails quickly glanced aside to see the self-destructing Hydra. As fast as he could, he jumped up to his feet and sprinted away, barely making it out of the lethal blast radius, but the shockwave still caught him, and he was thrown aside, slamming into the ground and tumbling several more meters.

"_...please Tails, oh please be ok..."_

_His vision slowly faded back in, and he saw her. "Ah... what happened?" he asked as he sat up, clutching the gash on his head._

"_Careful! You're hurt!"_

"...Tails? Tails?!" Knuckles tried to help the young fox back to his feet. "I'm so sorry, I didn't even see you... are you alright?" Tails stood back up, but kept his eyes closed. His head throbbed from the explosion.

"I'm fine, Knuckles," mumbled Tails. _Not the first time this has happened to me..._

Sonic dashed up to them after cleaning up the rest of the Vex, and took a look at Tails' forehead. "It looks like you're bleeding. Its not too bad, but you should probably patch it up."

"Theres a first aid kit in the X-Tornad-"

Tails didn't even finish the sentence before Sonic sprinted off to get it and was back in seconds. He rummaged through it and dug out some tape and a bandage, and (somewhat crudely) wrapped them around his head.

"Thanks Sonic," he said. "So where are we going next?"

"You're going home," said Sonic. "I don't want you fighting like this." Tails opened his mouth in protest, but the stern look on Sonic's face clearly said that it wasn't up for discussion.

"Ok. I'm sorry I can't go with you."

"Don't worry about it. You've helped me out plenty of times. You need a break." Sonic gently put a hand on his shoulder and smiled. "Just get some rest. There'll be plenty of action once you feel better."

Tails smiled back. "Thanks. If you ever do need me, though.. you know where I am."

He returned to his plane and took off. Sonic calmly watched as it disappeared over the horizon.

Knuckles looked at the charred wreckage of the Hydra. _Something's wrong with Sonic. I've never seen him fight with so much... hate. He said he saw these things massacre a bunch of people. Was it really that bad? Its not like we've never seen people get killed before. Maybe he's scared... No, thats impossible. Sonic, scared._

_Isn't it?_

He turned back to Sonic. "So where do we go next?"

"Wherever this 'Nexus' Eggman mentioned is." Sonic didn't even look at Knuckles. "He'll be there. And if he's this interested in the Vex, and the Nexus is so important to them, he'll know how to stop them."

"And if he's really trying to work with them?"

"Then we stop him, too. You don't have to come if you don't want to."

Knuckles sighed. As much as he hated to admit it, Sonic was his friend. And he needed him. "Well, if the Vex don't care about the Master Emerald, and Eggman's too busy dealing with them, then I guess I don't need to guard it. You know where we're going?"

"Yeah. I'll have to recall the way from memory, but we can probably get there before nightfall. C'mon, lets go."

And with that, they took off.

The Vex Citadel ominously towered over Venus. Sapphire jumped off of her Sparrow and gazed up towards the otherworldly structure. The Vex built it centuries ago, during The Collapse. It jutted from the planet like a diseased, metal tree. The ground where it was rooted was slowly turning into machinery. Lightning arced between the dark clouds swirling above its apex, as if The Darkness itself were gathering there. Its purpose was unknown, but the Vex guarded it heavily. No one had successfully infiltrated the Citadel.

It was the perfect place to go if one really didn't want to be followed.

The base was still further up the trail, but she wasn't looking to infiltrate. Just to shadow whoever she saw. The hunter began scaling the rock wall by the edge of the trail and ran along its ridge. At her command, her Ghost teleported her sniper rifle. She eventually found a good vantage point, went invisible, and laid down with her rifle.

She scanned the intricate stone walkways below. They were patrolled by the Vex, but something seemed odd- there was no pattern or coordination to their movements. The Vex were known for being unpredictable, but there was no way they could be working together.

At the corner of her scope, she noticed unusual movement. Focusing towards it, a pair of Hobgoblins were looking over the edge of the walkway they patrolled. One of them fell off, as though it were pulled, just before the other's head was sheared off.

Sapphire began quickly scanning for their assailant. It seemed like none of the other Vex had noticed. A pair of Minotaurs faced each other, only about 15 meters away from where the Hobgoblins were moments ago, just standing still. Its as if they were waiting- not for whoever was attacking, like they were waiting for orders.

She briefly caught a glimpse of movement on the ground.

_Invisibility. Another Hunter._

The other Guardian decloaked and immediately set upon the Minotaurs. His blade flashed with Arc Light and he rammed it through one's back. The construct was torn apart at the molecular level, and it collapsed to the ground as it disintegrated. The other made a lunge for him, but he had already blinked backwards. He drew an assault rifle and opened fire on the other. It retaliated with shots from its Torch Hammer, and he blinked away again.

Her finger hovering over the trigger, Sapphire wanted to help him, but part of her (and her Ghost) said to sit back and watch this violent game of cat-and-mouse. After a few moments of shoot, blink, repeat, the Guardian threw a grenade, which latched onto the Minotaur and detonated, severely damaging its case. Another burst from his rifle and it went down. She was barely impressed.

Sapphire continued to watch him cut through the Vex below. A squad of Hobgoblins caught sight of him from across the area. The Guardian immediately narrowly dodged the energy bolts discharged by their Line Rifles. Trading his assault rifle for a sniper rifle, he vanished to reposition before returning fire. Sapphire took a moment to zoom closely on him. His armor matched no known makes- it was jagged and angular, and colored black and red. His cloak was also pure black, with an unusual red marking on the back that she couldn't quite describe. The rifle he wielded was an extremely rare Icebreaker prototype. Sapphire would have been jealous, were it not for Icebreaker's reputation to explode during use.

The snipers dealt with, he compressed his rifle into a small, portable engram of programmable matter and stored it before drawing the handgun strapped to his belt and turned his attention to the swarm of Harpies confronting him. A few well-placed explosive shots downed several before they could unfold and attack. Blinking behind them, several more bullets took care of the rest.

Then he vanished again, and Sapphire lost track of him.

"So he just tore through a bunch of Vex... what's he up to?" she whispered.

A gun pressed into the back of her helmet.

"Why do you need to know?"

* * *

><p>I hate this chapter. Only took me 4 months to write. Lethal amounts of exposition (but hey, I'd prefer to address the Vex by name). More flashbacks than a Call of Duty game. I kinda gave up and eventually forced myself to write it and just shove it out after doing a once-over for grammar and continuity errors. Anyways, that makes chapter 2.<p>

Plan for next chapter: Actually advance the storyline. Don't suck. Take less than 4 months. Try to have the story done before Comet (or House of Wolves, if possible). That about sums it up.

Also on DeviantArt art/Sonic-Guardians-Chapter-2-The-Vex-513593680?ga_submit_new=10%253A1423810046 (okay, uh, can't do links, didn't know that, so I guess just put flyinpenguin117 . deviantart . c o m (they REALLY don't want links, am I gonna get in trouble for this?) in front of that without the spaces. I'll be posting other non-fanfiction stories, scraps, journals, etc. that I can't here)

_Its not over... it hasn't happened yet... and it will happen again._


	3. Chapter 3- Reluctant Alliances

"Well this looks... chaotic."

Knuckles was commenting on the all-out war between Eggman's robots and the Vex. They had run for nearly the whole day, and were now standing atop a wooded hill overlooking a valley. The sun was setting over Eggman's base, which apparently guarded the Nexus. The Vex, evidently, hadn't taken this lightly, and were attacking relentlessly. Entire armies of Harpies, Minotaurs, and Goblins, covered by Hobgoblins and Hydras, threw themselves at the front lines, only to be destroyed and replaced by even more. Sonic watched with a sinister sense of satisfaction.

_He almost looks like Shadow._ Better not to say that out loud.

"You want to get caught in the middle of this?" asked Knuckles.

Sonic contemplated it for a moment. "We're here for Eggman. We've got a distraction, its the perfect opportunity to get in undetected. Most of the defenders are dealing with the Vex, so we should go in through another side-"

"No," interrupted Knuckles. "Too many guns." The base was walled in, and a number of automated turrets lined the walls. The Vex were only attacking from one side. "They're not distracted by anything, they'll tear us apart."

"Maybe you will. I can get past them and try to disable them from the inside."

"So I just stand here while you get all the action?"

Sonic was already gone, sprinting down the hill at top speed. A pair of machine guns had already begun tracking him and opened fire. The hedgehog began sporadically dashing side to side to throw off their targeting. As soon as he was close enough to the wall, he jumped. The turrets continued to track. _If I timed this up right, they should hit each other right as I-_

He reached the peak of his arc between them, and they temporarily stopped firing. Eggman had programmed them specifically to not hit each other. _Darn._

Sonic hit the ground and started running again, the gun's bullets trailing just behind him. His maneuvering options were limited, so he quickly spin-dashed through a fortified door, leading into the base's main building. The interior wasn't so well guarded.

He ran down the metal hallways, searching for anything that could control the defenses. After several minutes and several downwards flights of stairs, he came across a red reinforced blast door. One failed spin dash later, he eyed a keypad built into the wall next to it and frantically began punching in random combinations of numbers.

"Not working out for you, hon?" Sonic turned around. "Just needs a woman's touch..."

Outside, the turrets that Knuckles was watching shut down. Seizing the opportunity, he ran in used his shovel claws to climb over the wall. He quickly ran to the door Sonic had opened.

"Oh no..."

"Hey there, sweetie," greeted Rouge. "Long time no see."

"Why is she here?" Knuckles turned to Sonic, ignoring her.

"Same reason as us," he replied. "Eggman."

"You're that interested in the Vex?" he asked Rouge.

"You mean those tin cans fighting the rust buckets outside?" She crossed her arms. "No. Eggman knows something else I want to. What that is, is my business."

_I think I've got an idea._

"So do you know where he is?" asked Knuckles.

"She got into the security cameras, and Eggman's in a panic room further down," Sonic answered.

"Then lets not waste any time," replied Knuckles. "Lead the way."

* * *

><p>Sapphire slowly pulled her hands away from the sniper and laid face-down on the ground.<p>

"Answer the question. Who are you?"

"I work for the Vanguard, I'm just a scout-"

"So what makes me worth following?" He pressed the gun deeper into her helmet.

"For the record, you were following me first-"

*_click*_

"No. We ended up in the same place. I left, you followed. Why?"

_Is this guy the Black Guardian? _

"5 seconds."

_Lie. Now._

_No. Better plan. I think..._

He pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the ground. Sapphire had blinked forward, reappeared in mid-air several meters ahead of the rock face and tumbled downwards. She fired her boots' thrusters to reorient before she hit the ground. The Black Guardian had his sights on her again immediately, and Sapphire dashed for cover. His hand cannon was loaded with explosive rounds, which tore at the ground and staggered her movements. One final round caught her in the back, knocking off her scout rifle and causing her to trip and roll on the ground before coming to rest behind a stone column, shaken, but still in fighting condition. She took a hit of vaporized adrenaline to numb the pain and sharpen her focus.

"You could've at least told him something!" her Ghost yelled at her.

"Not now! Get me my Devils!" Her scout rifle had been knocked off her back and her sniper rifle well away from her, she needed a backup... or two.

Ghost materialised a pair of hand cannons before her, one engraved on its barrel with the name 'The Devil You Know,' and the other, 'The Devil You Don't.' She only ever used them for Crucible exercises. They were meant for killing Guardians. One in each hand, she cloaked and wheeled out of cover.

One eye on her radar, she did a visual sweep of the area. The Black Guardian had leapt down from his perch. No signatures in range. Yet.

Suddenly, the edge of her radar flashed red, and Sapphire barely made out a distortion of movement. She wildly fired in its general direction, which at the very least threw off his charge. A bullet grazed his shoulder, and his camouflage failed, staggering him and forcing him into an accidental shoulder charge. The Hunters collided and both tumbled to the ground, knocking 'The Devil You Don't' out of Sapphire's right hand. She rolled over and got back up, training her remaining firearm on the Guardian- but for a moment, she hesitated. It was brief, but long enough for him to get the message.

Which he apparently didn't. Or he didn't care. He leapt into the air and thrust his hand foreword-

-and a split second later, a forceful kick met the back of Sapphires helmet, making her lose 'The Devil You Know.' She clambered for it, but his boot came down on her wrist. Sapphire reacted by grabbing his ankle and triggering her boot thrusters, launching them both forward, hard.

Reacting quickly mid-thrust, Sapphire caught the ground and did a full somersault. The Black Guardian had been thrown to the ground and recovered a split-second after her. His grip was much better than Sapphire's and he still held his gun. Seizing her brief advantage, Sapphire drew a knife and threw it at his wrist. It didn't fully pierce, but it was enough to make him drop the gun .

He retaliated by drawing his own blade, and it flashed blue as it charged with Arc Light. Sapphire's guns were scattered- ballistic ones, anyways.

_So thats how its gonna be..._

He leapt through the air and Sapphire caught him around his blade arm, barely managing to lock him, with a Golden Gun aimed straight up under his chin, and forced her other arm to his off-hand.

"KNOCK IT OFF, BOTH OF YOU!"

A pair of Ghosts had appeared in the narrow space between their faces, facing their respective Guardians. The other spoke with a distinctly female voice.

"Save it for the Crucible!"

* * *

><p>"<em>PLEASE LET US BACK IN DOCTOR EGGMAN! WE'RE NOT BUILT FOR COMBAT!"<em>

"For the last time, NO!" the Doctor yelled back into the radio. "You say out with the rest until the Vex are gone!" And with that, he shut down the radio, cutting off Deccoe's annoying voice. He groaned and rubbed between his eyes as he slouched down in a nearby chair. Weeks of Vex-induced nightmares had worn thin on him. Studying them was a mistake.

He almost felt guilty, if his actions had lured the Vex to him. So much destruction, and to him, it was all pointless. People had almost forgotten about him when the Vex invaded. It was admirable, in a dark way. If his estimations were correct, the body count made by the Vex was in the high thousands by now. At least one major population center was burned to the ground- yet the Vex had spared so many who lived there. Even he couldn't match their brutal efficiency, at least not without some Chaos-powered WMD. _And these ones aren't even..._

The door behind him crashed open. "I knew it was only a matter of time until you showed up," he said to Sonic without turning.

"Eggman..." he began.

"Oh, would you just save it?" The doctor snapped, wheeling about to face him and standing up. "I have enough problems with the Vex _without _you getting in the middle of it!"

"Bringing them here doesn't seem like such a good idea now, does it?" growled his nemesis.

"I assume you know everything by now," he said, sitting back down. "And you still think I'm responsible for all of this."

"Get in with an evil power you can't possibly hope to control?" Sonic approached Eggman. "Sounds like typical Egghead stuff to me."

In an instant, Sonic leapt up, grabbed Eggman by his collar and forced him out of his chair and against the control panels behind him.

"But this time... you've gone too far."

Knuckles watched the whole encounter. _Too far? He's destroyed cities. Threatened to blow up planets. How is this, of all things, "too far?" _Not that he felt any sympathy for Eggman.

Eggman barely reacted to the assault. "What are you going to do, kill me?" _It would be a relief at this point. _Sonic tightened his grip. "We both know you need me alive if you want to stop the Vex." _If they can even be stopped._

"Let him go, Sonic," interjected Rouge. "We need him alive."

"Remember what I told you when you became... corrupted? What would happen if you let your anger control you?" asked Eggman. Sonic remembered all too well. But this was different. He had bigger concerns than becoming like Shadow. "I've learned alot about these things. You've never faced anything like them. You can fight them forever. You can destroy every construct that comes to our world, and you'll never win."

This only infuriated Sonic even more. "Then how _do_ we win?"

"The Vex network is spreading through our planet's crust, like a disease. Turning into a giant machine." Everyone else's heart skipped a beat. "These Vex are called the 'Scisix Inquisitive.' The Nexus, as you know, is beneath our feet at this moment. This machine, before I contained it, is what's making the networks expand. I suspect its what controls all of the Vex here. An Inquisitive Mind-"

Sonic threw Eggman to the ground and darted out of the room. "C'mon, Knuckles," he yelled. "He's told us everything we need to know." Knuckles followed without protest.

"WAIT! STOP! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE DOING!" He stood up to chase after them, but Rouge blocked his path.

Sonic and Knuckles only stopped for a minute. "Start running now, Eggman. Once I'm done with the Vex... I'm coming for you." Then they were gone.

He turned to Rouge, who was still in the room. "Rouge! Please!" he begged. "You have to stop them! If they destroy The Nexus, then-"

"On one condition," said Rouge.

"Anything! I'll do anything, just _please_ help me!"

"Where's Shadow? What happened to him?"

Eggman froze for a second. It seemed like such an odd request at this time. Last time they met, she said she didn't care about Shadow.

"I hate to break this to you, but for all intents and purposes... Shadow is dead."

"I don't believe you," Rouge shot back, crossing her arms. "Where is he?"

"I have no way of knowing for sure. All I know is that he stopped time in the center of the galaxy. He spent the last of his energy. In the most likely scenario, he's Lost In Time. Even if he's still alive, he has no power. He's gone to us, forever."

Rouge turned around and closed her eyes. _He's right. All that waiting, all that hope... for nothing._

"There. I'm sorry." He handed her a wrist communicator. "Now hold up your end of the bargain."

Rouge put the device on and ran out of the room, towards the Nexus. _He might still be alive... somewhere..._

Eggman's words echoed in her head. _He's Lost In Time..._

* * *

><p>Sapphire let her visor de-tint, allowing the other Guardian to see her glaring eyes. Her magic handgun burned in her hand, and he held his crackling Arc Blade to her throat. One pull of the trigger, or a slide of the blade, would consume one of them in a torrent of Solar or Arc light.<p>

But they stayed, locked together, staring, their Ghosts nervously waiting to attempt to revive them. After a few agonizing seconds, their Light weapons faded. The Black Guardian held an ordinary knife, and Sapphire held thin air.

Sapphire gave way first, letting go of his off-hand and slowly sliding out of his grip. The Black Guardian sheathed his knife.

If Ghosts had lungs, they'd breath a sigh of relief. "Can I have a moment?" asked the female Ghost.

"Don't go anywhere," Sapphire muttered and turned away, walking to her dropped firearms. Her Ghost trailed behind.

"Well, that went smoothly," he said, with more than a hint of sarcasm. "You just can't let this go, can you? What are you going to tell him?"

"How do you think he'll react?" Sapphire picked up 'The Devil You Know' and her thrown knife.

"Ok, I'll bite with this ridiculous 'Black Guardian' business. Worst case scenario, he's evil, offs you, and takes me before I can revive you."

"He's got a Ghost," she suggested. Ghosts never stayed with fallen Guardians.

"Then he'll just think you're crazy."

"So don't tell him the truth." She retrieved her other gun. "We were going to the same place. He's the one who freaked out."

"You watched him through the scope of a high-powered sniper rifle, what did you expect?"

"Speaking of which, can you go get that for me?" Ghost quickly floated up to her sniper perch while Sapphire holstered her handguns on her utility belt and picked up her scout rifle. She briefly glanced at the Black Guardian, who was speaking with his Ghost. He was facing away from her, giving a clear view of the red symbol on his black cloak. It was some type of swirl, with spine-like arcs jutting out of it.

"Ghost?" she quietly asked, once he was within hearing distance. "Can you image that symbol on his cloak for me?"

He turned to face the Black Guardian, focusing in on his cloak. "Done. I'll cross-reference with the Cryptarch's records for anything once we get out of the dark zone."

_I know what you're doing._

_ Never seen anything like it before. I don't blame her, especially after that scrap they just got into. I tried to talk her down._

_ Same here. It seems like he never listens to me. He just drew the symbol himself, its nothing special._

_ Is he... special in any way?_

_ Best not to talk about it. I know he's going to lie._

_ So will she._

_ They at least won't kill each other. Let them talk. Maybe they can work something out._

"Hey," Sapphire said. The other Guardian turned to face her. She bit her lip and pulled off her helmet. "Sorry about that whole thing. Lets start from square one, okay?"

"Fine." They approached each other.

"My name's Sapphire. I'm a scout for the Vanguard. I was tasked with scouting Vex territory on Venus, mainly looking for the Vault of Glass. Thats where I met you. You ran off, and I got... curious. I'll admit, the rifle probably wasn't my best surveillance tool." She looked him straight in the visor, only seeing her own, obscured reflection. "So thats me."

He stared back at her for a few seconds. _For a supposedly legendary Guardian, he's pretty short..._

"Let me get a few things straight," he said. "I don't give a damn who you are. I don't trust you. I distanced myself from the Vanguard long ago."

"Your choice or theirs?"

"Mine." He paused for a moment. "But my Ghost trusts you, and I trust her judgement. So if you want to work together... then fine."

"Great. So what are you up to?"

"Same thing as you: Investigating the Vault of Glass. Do you know how the Vex work?"

"They're some sort of hive-mind, and they're robots. Do I look like a Warlock?"

"More of a Titan," he continued. He started walking past her, and Sapphire followed. "Now shut up and pay attention. Its true, the Vex are like a hive mind, a vast network of intelligence, but this network is connected." After walking a ways, they were confronted by a small squad of Goblins. He drew his handgun and downed the first, and Sapphire followed suit with one of hers. The whole group was destroyed before any of them could get an accurate shot.

"And thats what happens when you sever that connection." Just past them, up on a platform built into the Citadel, was a square, white column, a Conflux of Vex data streams. "You see, all Vex respond to different directives. The Hezen Protective and Corrective, Aphix Invasive, so on and so forth."

"Get to the point." They stopped by the Conflux, and he let his Ghost begin scanning it.

"Don't talk when I am," he interjected. "These programmings are centralized by a Vex Axis Mind. I assume you've been tasked with killing them before?"

"I've been told to kill some big Vex in the past, I never bothered asking what they do." He turned away, and his hand met his face. "And don't call me a Titan again."

"The Axis Minds," he continued, "concentrate and process data from all Vex in its network. They compute all relevant data and plot out the local network's course of action, letting more of the individual unit's computing power go towards its own tasks."

"So you kill the Axis minds..."

"And the network is forced to divide all of its processes amongst available units, slowing down their coordination."

"And if we kill them all, they're weak enough to destroy."

"Exactly. For years, I've studied and hunted the Vex. Confluxes like this one let us into the network. My Ghost managed to lure out the Protective Mind, a Cyclops."

Sapphire thought back to her earlier fight, before finding the Vault.

"Before I could find it, someone- and I guess you- killed it. That crippled the Hezen Protective. And thats why we could get here. If this goes well, we'll be able to lure out the Invasive and Corrective minds. And once they're killed-"

"-we get into the Vault of Glass," she finished. There was a flash of light, and the Conflux dissolved.

"What happened?" asked the Guardian.

"I don't know," responded his Ghost. "It just... vanished. I'm sorry, I couldn't get anything relevant."

"They know what you're up to," said Sapphire. "Now what?"

The Black Guardian thought for a moment. "We find another Conflux. I already know where one is."

"No," said his Ghost. "Even with the Hezen Protective weakened, we're not going to the Terminus."

"Before you ask," cut in Sapphire's Ghost, "its the center of the Vex Citadel." Sapphire smiled and put on her helmet. "I regret telling you that already."

"Fight our way through an army of murderous robots into the very heart of their power? Sounds like fun."

"You have a strange definition of the word 'fun.'"

"So," she turned to the Black Guardian. "Need a hand with that?"

"I could use a bullet shield." The Ghosts merged with their Guardians. He jumped up, and thrusters in his boots carried him up to a bridge leading to the Citadel. Sapphire followed suit. It was strange that his boots were just like hers. Most Hunter gear had mechanisms built in to redirect kinetic energy for a quick burst of movement. Retro rockets weren't common, but allowed for greater maneuverability and lift, if built right. If not, say goodbye to your legs.

"Hey, before we begin," Sapphire interrupted. He turned around to face her. "I didn't catch your name."

He paused for a moment.

"No, you didn't. Try and keep up." He took off, apparently using his boots as some sort of skates.

_So thats how he moves so fast. I wonder..._

Sapphire got into a sprint, triggered one of her thrusters, and immediately flipped head-over-heels and slammed into the ground.

"Ok, he's got practice," she groaned, standing up and taking off after him into the Heart of the Citadel.

* * *

><p>Well, at least this one didn't take 3 months. I actually had the majority of it written 2 weeks after the last chapter, I just kinda stalled on it (its hard to write Destiny fanfiction and not get sidetracked by Destiny. I do still play Sonic, just not as much as Destiny...)<p>

Thanks to The Joining for their review. It REALLY helped out. I've done quite a bit of tweaking to the story, and it now has at least 5 more chapters to it. It still ends the same, predictable way, but takes a different path to get there. Sonic's awkwardly-short story is getting some more weight to it, which adds a bit more to the Destiny side (more on that in future chapters). So if you like this story (or don't like it, but want to), go ahead and leave a review. I always appreciate feedback, even if its not entirely positive.

Edited for a bunch of formatting errors that weren't imported. Sorry for whoever read this story within 8 hours of it being published.

Edited again to say this: This story isn't that great. I realize that. I appreciate The Joining's reviews, and I'm not going to say that I'm backing up at the slightest sign of criticism, but this chapter basically was a wake-up call for me on 2 things: First, I bit off more than I could chew for my first story, and second, that I'm not taking enough pride in my work. Chapter 2 and 3 were "do it and get it done," and in retrospect, it worked out for the last chapter, but not this one. This is a serious low point in my writing. I pretty much knew everything that would be said in this chapter's review before it was said (IE, Rouge doing nothing, Sonic going too far down the dark path, and obvious foreshadowing), and that's a serious problem, especially since I have 10 chapters left. I'm working on chapter 4, but I'm kinda unsure on where to take it. So here's the deal: This story's going on the back burner for a little bit. I want to try one or two smaller stories before diving back into this. I want to say it won't be a serious delay (only 1-2 months), but if I kept to my promises, chapter 3 would've been better and chapter 4 would be out within 2 weeks. Don't think it ends here, though. I've seen too many fics die before their time. By me making this edit, consider it a promise: this story WILL continue, and it WILL get better from here on out.


	4. Chapter 4- FRAGMENT

_He stood in the near-empty arena, Vex wreckage strewn haphazardly about. His opponent, a Vex Gate Lord, kneeled before him, gravity tethers holding it in place- a little-known technique he had picked up on a few decades back. _

_ "The Queen's Guard is starting to get past our countermeasures. If you're really going through this, you'd better make this quick."_

_ Something was coming. This Gate Lord knew what- but getting that knowledge was seemingly impossible. It couldn't be coerced, like he had done with the Fallen before. Destroying it would only affect the body. The mind, though heavily damaged, would escape back into the Vex networks. As a precaution, his Ghost had shut down the portal in this cell, momentarily isolating it. Fragments would persevere and escape eventually, but it would protect his sanity- what little she thought he had left- by not exposing him to the infinite axis of the Vex._

_ "Then let's hope this works." He began removing his left gauntlet as his Ghost unpacked a new one._

_ "Are you sure you want to go through with this?"_

_ "I've come too far for anything else. There's more on the line than just me." _

_ This gauntlet was no ordinary glove. It had been reforged from Vex component matter, and adapted into a neural interface. With this, he would forcibly drag information out of the Gate Lord._

_ He strapped on the armor, taking a moment to adjust to the sensation of wearing it. He had worn it before, but it felt... different every time. The interface was originally connected to a Vex mind core. Ghost had calculated at least 39 ways the experiment could go horribly wrong, and only 3 where it could go right._

_ Once it was securely on, he looked back towards the colossus. It stared back with it's singular, damaged eye, flickering with contempt. It had already deduced what he would try to do._

_ "Last chance."_

_ Ignoring her pleas, he drew his knife (in case it really did go wrong- outcome number 13) and approached it. Last time he had gotten this close, it made the brash move of trying to crush him in it's fist. Now it could do nothing. It couldn't call for help, detain him in a dimensional sphere- all it could do was continue to stare. Study. Anticipate._

_ And with that, he reached out and touched it's mind core._

_ Ghost watched fearfully, monitoring his body's reaction. Almost immediately, his pulse changed. Unknown energies coursed through his nervous system. His body temperature began rapidly fluctuating within a range of 3.5 degrees in either direction. Despite this, he held his composure, transfixed on the bowed Vex's eye._

_ Seven seconds passed before he spoke up. _

"_Tell me everything. You know what I want."_

_ More anomalies in his nervous system, mainly the auditory cortex. He could hear what it was saying- but could he understand?_

_ "Because you knew I would be here. That's why you brought yourself to this prison."_

_ The machine growled._

_ "I've figured out more than you realize. I know you saw. Millennia ago, when the galaxy was nearly destroyed. I know you played your part in that. Why?"_

_ Silence._

_ "STOP SPEAKING IN RIDDLES!"_

_ Almost immediately, he recoiled in pain and cried out, yet kept his hand firmly locked on the Axis Mind._

_ Ghost spoke again. "If it's not telling you anything, you should-"_

_ "No," he panted, clearly in pain, yet still defiant. "I got something... I just... need more..."_

_ "We'll run with it. Pull out now!"_

_ Shaking his head, he focused on the Vex again. The temperature in his arm touching the Vex began increasing..._

_ "Who? What forbidden power?" He shook his head. "Why would the Vex want to- AAAGGHH!"_

_ The gauntlet suddenly flared to several hundred kelvin- enough to completely incinerate his arm. He desperately tried to pull away, to no avail- the Gate Lord had him trapped. Reacting quickly, Ghost tried to interface with the gauntlet, but it had too strong of a grip on him. Immediately, she went for her second option, a total information overload. She streamed a beam of raw data through her eye, disrupting the Gate Lord's hold. Seizing the opportunity, he drove his knife into his arm, but it failed to completely cut through. Fighting against the scalding pain, he kept hacking and pulling away until he finally broke free._

_ The temperature immediately reverted to normal. He staggered backwards, clawing off what remained of the charred glove- then froze at what he saw._

_ It had -replaced- his arm. Once organic, now fully formed into the alien metal limbs of the Vex. _

_ He barely had time to contemplate on it, though, before the Gate Lord broke free of its voidlight restraints and rose to fight him again. Before the Guardian could react, it slammed it's foot into the ground, discharging a massive shockwave and throwing him across the room and colliding with a wall._

_ The wounded Guardian barely blinked out of the way as the Gate Lord attacked with it's Torch Hammer. Once in cover, he drew his hand cannon, unable to use his mechanical arm, and haphazardly shot back, aiming for it's power core as it retreated to its portal. A few explosive arc-charged rounds made contact, harmlessly splashing across it's armor, but doing no real damage._

_ He charged, ducking from cover to cover and wildly exchanging shots with the Axis Mind. He was NOT going to let it escape. His gun ran dry, and he hunkered down behind a wall to reload. Flicking the cylinder open and dropping the magazine, he fumbled with his still-numb arm to load a new one, dropping it in the process._

_ Space itself distorted in the cell as the Gate Lord reignited it's portal. He wouldn't have time to kill it- only one option left. _

_ Drawing his Void Bow, he leapt out of cover, quickly took aim, and fired a gravity tether in it's general direction. A torrent of voidlight lashed out and snagged the arm holding it's torch hammer, pulling it away. He lined up for a second shot- and then time froze around him._

_ It had trapped him in a detainment sphere. He had failed. One way or another, it would get away. The best he could do now was not get captured by the Awoken. He drew an incendiary grenade, hit the primer, and dropped it at his feet._

_ The door to the cell opened and dozens of the Queen's Guard stormed in, rifles ready. After ensuring the cell was secure, Petra Venj followed them in and surveyed the area, accompanied by Variks._

_ The lead sergeant approached her. "No sign of him here. Looks like Qodron got out, too."_

_ "Well, I doubt we'll get it back. It'll be worlds away by now." She continued to slowly walk about the arena, letting Variks keep up. "Dispatch patrols and monitor all traffic. We're not letting this Guardian get away. The Queen wants him alive."_

_ The sergeant nodded, and sent out the order for the remaining guards to follow her out. Petra and Variks remained behind._

"_Variks, you know more about the Queen's specimens than me." She examined a large burn mark on the ground. "What would he want with a Gate Lord?"_

"_Hmmmm... this Guardian... Queen knows him. Variks does not."_

_She drew her knife and twirled it about in her hand. Clearly Variks wasn't helping. Mara Sov likely already knew what he was after. "Well, she won't be happy one of her prized possessions escaped."_

_ "Vex not our prisoner," growled the Warden. "Here for purpose. A purpose now served, yes?"_

_ She tossed the knife up and caught it blade-first. "So you think it wanted him to come here." Before Variks could respond, she turned and exited the Prison. "I guess we'll just ask our guest when we get him back."_

* * *

><p><em> The Guardian and his Ghost approached his ship, hidden in the haunted remains of a Ketch in the asteroid belt. Looking down at his arm, he turned it about a few times as his Ghost primed his jumpship's engines.<em>

_ "It gave me a name. Kabr." Ghost curiously turned to him. "I've heard it before."_

_The little construct idly spun for a moment. "There are some records of a 'Kabr' in Guardian archives. He's been missing for years, though."_

_ "I think I know where to find him." His jumpship active, he climbed into the cockpit and activated the stealth drive- there would be Reef patrols all over. "Set coordinates for Venus. The Vault of Glass is real."_

_ "The Vault?" Sworn to serve him, his Ghost reluctantly interfaced with the controls. "This sounds like a trap."_

"_I know." He took off his helmet and rested it on his metallic arm. "But its a risk I have to take. The Vex.. " Still finding it hard to believe himself and still shaken from his fight, he struggled to find the words. "The Vex want to recreate the universe. Exterminate all life at once. Somehow, the Vault is key to that."_

_ "That doesn't seem like typical Vex MO..."_

_ "Because it wasn't their idea." The ship levitated up and slowly drifted out of the derelict. "Something... someone... is controlling them."_

_ "That's impossible."_

_ "I know how it sounds. It's not all Vex- just a rogue segment of them. As for what's controlling them..." His voice trailed off for a second. "It knows me. Told the Vex everything about me. Everything they didn't already know, at least."_

_ Ghost simply stared in stunned silence. "You don't really think it could be-"_

_ "I don't know what to think," he sighed. "But it looks like my past is starting to catch up to me." His grip tightened on the control stick._

_ "All the more reason you should go back to the Tower and-"_

_ "As far as Andal is concerned- and as far as I am, for that matter- Shadow is dead," he snapped, crushing the ship's controls with his robot arm. Ghost immediately took control of the flight computer, and he stared at the mangled joystick in his robotic arm._

_ "Sorry. It's still numb." He threw it to the ground with a metallic 'clang.'_

_ "You should get feeling back eventually."_

_ Silence fell over the cockpit for a few minutes. Shadow closed his eyes and bowed his head. The Vault of Glass. Most Guardians would give anything to so much as try to crack it's door. He had long been disillusioned to the grandeur and recklessness of most Hunters. Whatever horrors awaited on Venus..._

_ "We need to go back, now!"_

_ The voice was his own. He snapped his head up and instinctively looked around the cockpit. Predictably, it was just as empty as it was a moment ago. His Ghost made no response- he hadn't physically said anything._

_ A new feeling seized him. An all too familiar one._

_ He suddenly felt very alone._

* * *

><p>There's probably gonna be more author's notes here than actual story content. First and foremost: I'm a f*cking liar. Never listen to anything I say.<p>

This story's becoming much more difficult than I initially envisioned. Destiny's constantly changing lore made me rewrite vast sections of the story at least 3 times before I posted the last chapter. After The Taken King dropped, I was tempted to just drop it entirely with how dramatically I'd have to write this all out and have it still be believable. I've got sort of a new direction for it, but my waning interest in Destiny, the fact that I'm now in college, and my sudden addiction to Battlefield 4 (which is going to literally kill me) have made this complicated, to say the least.

I'll try and pick up the pace and actually finish Sonic Guardians, but no guarantees. A distinct possibility is me cutting this story entirely and going with a rebooted version I've been idly drafting in my spare time, which I was initially going to pick up after this concluded. I'd hate to just kill the story, so I'd probably end up eventually summarizing the rest of the story and writing just the last chapter.

Or I can just drop off the face of the Earth and never write fanfiction again. I guess all we can do at this point is just see what happens.


	5. Surrender and summary of remaining story

I surrender. There, I said it. I've given up on this story- there's no way I'll ever be able to finish it in a satisfactory way. Combined with the fact that I don't play Destiny anymore, I have no motivation left to even try. I'd hate to just hit the abort button and leave it at that, so I'll do what I said I would, even if it possibly violates FF rules. Here's what's left of this incoherent nonsense:

Chapter 5- The Inquisitive Mind: Picking up where the actual story left off a year ago, Sonic and Knuckles work their way to the Nexus below Eggman's base to destroy the Inquisitive Mind (I had this chapter about 33% complete, but the last time I touched it was August). During a quiet moment in an elevator, Knuckles presses Sonic on what exactly has been causing him so much stress. Sonic skirts the issue, but asks Knuckles how he'd react if somebody they knew had gotten killed- not like Cosmo, who sacrificed herself for the greater good, but if one of their friends simply was killed in a fight. Sonic says nobody they know personally has been killed, but Knuckles still suspects that there's more to it. Knuckles admits he'd lose his temper, but would direct his anger at whoever was responsible, telling Sonic he can't help Sonic if his plan is to kill Eggman. Sonic accepts this, then they reach the Inquisitive Mind, which Eggman froze in time using 4 of the Chaos Emeralds. They're confronted by two heavy security mechs, which they fight and destroy (Knuckles using a slab of Vex metal he tore off the wall as an improvised shield- there's some foreshadowing for you). Rouge confronts them as they're about to free it and destroy it, and attempts to get them to stand down, as per Eggman's request. However, the Inquisitive Mind breaks free of its restraints (them having already claimed one of the Chaos Emeralds to use in the earlier fight) and attacks them. In addition to the Harpy minions it summons, it's capable of trapping them in detention spheres, using the Chaos Emeralds. After a long and painful fight, they manage to destroy it, and the Nexus collapses, Sonic teleporting them out at the last second. Eggman contacts them, warning them that the Vex now view them as a greater threat, believing that initially, the Scisix only came to study them at first. They split the Chaos Emeralds among them, Sonic and Rouge each taking one, Knuckles taking the remaining two and returning to the Master Emerald with them. Sonic and Rouge go their separate ways. Some cryptic dialogue shows another Axis Mind taking over the Scisix Inquisitive.

Chapter 6- Terminus: In the future, Sapphire and her new companion fight their way through an army of Vex to reach the Juncture. Sapphire's recklessness and cocky attitude annoy the Black Guardian to no small extent- he openly admits that she's pretty much a child. She disputes this for a few seconds before returning to the fight. After destroying Vechron, Spire Lord, the Black Guardian disables the shielding around the gravity lift leading to the Terminus with his Vex mechanical arm (which Sapphire teases him about). They head up, finding the area seemingly empty, with a large Conflux on the far side of the platforms, and immediately identify it as a trap. Regardless, they work their way across, and the Vex attack just as their Ghosts access the Conflux. After much mounting Vex pressure, they get the information they need and are forced to jump out of the Citadel. Sapphire miscalculates her descent, and hits the ground at terminal velocity, dying instantly.

Chapter 7- A Promise: After a nightmare about his first encounter with the Vex, Sonic wakes up on the grounded Blue Typhoon with Tails, where he went after the fight with the Inquisitive Mind. Tails has also had trouble sleeping, and has been monitoring the military's radio frequencies to keep tabs on Vex activity (Sonic's world isn't detailed very well in Sonic X, which was sort of difficult for me to work with). It seems the past several hours have seen a decrease in Vex hostility, but they're moving much more- like they're searching for something. Some of them have returned to the city they had wiped out. Sonic and Tails debate what their true purpose here is, and how they can defeat them, comparing to what it would be like to fight the Metarex, had they never found Cosmo. Sonic tells Tails he needs to see Amy the next day.

Cutting to the future, Sapphire awakes in a cave on Venus with the Black Guardian. An acid rain storm forced them to head north and seek shelter in the Ember Caves, after driving out the Fallen, before Sapphire could be revived. She teases him a little bit about his seeming change of heart, but he remains as distant as ever, saying he just still needs her. Undeterred, Sapphire tries to get him to open up a bit more. In a canon-contradicting move, she tells him about her previous life. From what little she can remember, she had a husband and a child in the final days of the Golden Age. During the collapse, they went to the Russian Cosmodrome to try and escape Earth, but their refugee convoy was ambushed by the Fallen. All of them were killed. The last thing she heard was her daughter crying for her, then being reborn by her Ghost. She admits Sapphire isn't her real name- it was given to her by Cayde-6, from the silver/sapphire ring from her previous life she always wears (plus Sapphire Wire, her eyes, and my total lack of creativity). All he tells her in return is that his name is Shadow, which she considers a start. His Ghost privately tells him that there was someone in the Vex network, seemingly calling for help.

Knuckles returns to the Master Emeralds shrine, fortunately finding it still safe. Soon after, though, he's attacked by Vex. He fights them off, until a laser beam impacts from the sky, knocking him out. This was the OC Vex I had come up with, but had a hard time truly implementing them in the story- they're called Archangels. They're like satellites the Vex deploy in orbit of planets during inquisitions, mostly used for mapping, surveillance, and network communication, but can also double up as fire support or excavation.

Chapter 8- :The next day, Sonic and Tails go to see Amy, and Sonic reveals what had happened to her. During his first fight with the Vex, she had been severely injured, almost killed, by the time he found her, and was hospitalized in one of the still-secure cities. It's very likely she's been permanently handicapped, which to Sonic is a fate worse than death. During his visit (I had never really finalized whether or not Amy would actually be conscious for this), he hears Knuckles angrily yelling in the next room over, where he's being treated for injuries sustained in his fight with the Vex. They check on him, and he tells them about the fight, and how Rouge dragged him to safety after he'd been knocked out, unwilling to lose another one of her friends after Eggman told her Shadow was dead (she had gone to the Shrine in the first place to try and steal the Master Emerald again- "die doing what she loved," so to speak). However, he reveals that the Vex had taken the Master Emerald, and very likely are going for the Chaos Emeralds next. Just then, they're attacked by Vex (again)- Hobgoblins on the rooftop across the street, and an Overmind Minotaur on the ground. Realizing it's after the Chaos Emeralds, Rouge gives hers to Sonic and goes with Tails to help evacuate the hospital, while Sonic and Knuckles engage the Vex, Knuckles attacking the Minotaur while Sonic clears out the Hobgoblins. Soon after, Tails joins in the X-Tornado, but the Overmind Minotaur proves too powerful to destroy- it's capable of using the Master Emerald's powers to negate the effects of the Chaos Emeralds. Despite damaging it's case, it still manages to seize the Emeralds and retreats. Shortly after, Eggman sends them a message through Bokkun (whose voice modulator was damaged in the fighting, and he threatens to repair it if they don't listen). The Vex are building some sort of portal in the ruins of the destroyed city (I never had a name for it), and likely needed the Chaos Emeralds to power it up (directly contradicting my earlier statements about their capabilities). Wherever it leads, and whatever they need the Emeralds for, is unknown. Sonic volunteers to go through the portal, with Knuckles coming as well to retrieve the Master Emerald.

Chapter 9- The Crest Of Eternity: This is where the stories start to really intertwine. Using the X-Tornado, Tails takes Sonic and Knuckles to the portal as it's powering up, and Qodron appears, attempting to stop them and take the Chaos Emeralds. They manage to get past it, entering the Vex pocket dimension. In the future, Sapphire and Shadow head to the Endless Steps, luring out Zydron, their next target. Seizing an opportunity, Shadow apologizes before darting past the Gate Lord and passing through the portal, but Sapphire follows him anyways. The dimension inside appears to be a massive, shifting, stair-like structure- an appropriate continuation of the Endless Steps. It appears to be under construction of some sort. The teams work their way up, bot evading the Gate Lords of their respective time periods, and inadvertantly run into each other at it's Nexus, where the timelines merge (a brief fight ensues). Recognizing them, Shadow removes his helmet for the first time, revealing himself as Shadow the Hedgehog (Sapphire is initially confused, but admits she's probably seen- and killed- stranger things). He gets a brief moment to explain what happen- he had been frozen in time for ages- possibly thousands or millions of years- after the fight with Final Nova, and was finally released on Earth, shortly before the Darkness hit, bore witness to the Collapse, and was chosen as one of the first Guardians- he's been one for hundreds of years. They're set upon by the Gate Lords, fight ensues. Sapphire offers Sonic and Knuckles guns, which they both turn down, her taking offense to it. They successfully destroy them, and Zydron releases something- a data fragment, recording the last words of Kabr in the Vault of Glass, which recites a paraphrased version of a bunch of Grimoire cards. The fragment is deleted, and they're confronted by another Axis Mind, this one without a physical manifestation, claiming it knows all of them. Shadow finally recognizes it- it's the mind of Black Narcissus. The Metarex had long adapted Vex technology into their bodies after discovering Vex artifacts on their home planet, and encounters with them during their galactic conquest. Black Narcissus studied them intently, keeping most of his discoveries secret from the other Metarex leaders, and devised a plan to merge his consciousness into the Vex Collective in the event of his death. Shadow deduces his endgame: When he had interrogated Qodron in the Prison of Elders, he realized Qodron was secretly rebelling against the higher Vex consciousness, possibly with other higher Axis Minds. The "forbidden power" was, in fact, the ability to control and rewrite reality within the Vault of Glass. Shadow had actually been in the Vault before, with Kabr, Pahanin, Praedyth, and possibly two other Guardians who had been erased from existence. Like Pahanin, he had fled, and the Vex altered the events that transpired so that they "never happened," and they were wiped from his memory. This power can only manifest within the Vault, but the use of the Chaos Emeralds could amplify it's power, allowing them to control the universe- and Black Narcissus would use it to undo the Metarex's defeat, and reform the universe into the lifeless, harmonious reality they envisioned. This whole time, he had been subtly pulling strings within and without to get the Chaos Emeralds to him and forward in time, to Venus. It's purpose being served, he begins to destroy the Nexus, but not before Knuckles can take back the Master Emerald. They return to their timelines, however, Shadow's Ghost goes with Sonic and Knuckles, and Sapphire forcibly drags him back to keep him from getting himself killed.

Chapter 10- Breaking Point: This is where the Destiny side gets kinda ambiguous, given how many times I've rewritten the story. In an earlier draft, Shadow had a more direct tie to the Darkness and the Collapse. Believing him to be evil, and being partially brainwashed by the Vex, Sapphire would have attempted to kill him, but ultimately just abandons him on Venus. After debriefing the Vanguard, a conversation with Cayde-6, and a transmission from Shadow's Ghost (who didn't go with Sonic in this draft), she returns to Venus to help him storm the Vault and stop the Vex. This all was scrapped, but I never found a suitable replacement for this particular chain of events, but it still ends the same way. In any case, he at least tells her about his identity. He hadn't always been isolated from the Tower. Only after the failed Raid on the Vault of Glass did he drive himself into exile. His rare appearances, trademark dark armor, and years of handed down quotes from Pahanin's mad ramblings began spawning rumors of the "Black Guardian." He was well aware of them, but chose to let them evolve as they did, but also admits that the stories of him and his supposed power were often wildly exaggerated.

Sonic, Knuckles, and Shadow's Ghost (I should add: due to her voice, he named her Maria) return to their world, finding the flow of time had been distorted for them and several days had passed. The Vex are still present. They meet with Tails, Eggman, and Rouge on the Blue Typhoon to discuss the situation, joined by Amy, who's been discharged from the hospital, albeit bound to a wheelchair and attended by Cream. They know it's a longshot, but their best course of action is to go to the Vault in their timeline, even if it means leaving their world- the fate of the universe is more important. Eggman says he'll stay behind and have what few robots he has left try and hold off the Vex as long as possible. Amy says she's going too, despite Sonic's protests and knowing she can't do much in her state. After some maintenance, Tails gets the Blue Typhoon spaceworthy again, and Maria gives them the galactic coordinates to Venus.

Chapter 12- Become Legend: In the future, Sapphire joins Shadow outside the Vault, narrowly saving him from Praetorians. A reinforcement fireteam is on the way from the Tower- even the two of them wouldn't be able to get into the Vault. Before they can show up, however, the Vault activates. It's power is sent to the Vex Citadel, which emits a dimensional field that engulfs Venus. The Blue Typhoon arrives in orbit around Venus, noticing the same anomaly in the past. Tails discovers that all Time is converging on the Vault, and the field is expanding, which will eventually encompass everything. Knuckles is able to use the Master Emerald to temporarily halt it, but they still can't get through it. On the ground, an army of Vex confront Shadow and Sapphire, more than they've ever faced before. Despite fighting hard, Sapphire is mortally wounded. Ghost can revive her, but she has a different plan- one that will kill her, permanently. Detecting that the field is weakened, if her Ghost allows her to release her Light, she might be able to breach it, letting in whoever's outside- a Guardian's unrestrained Light is incredibly powerful. It's what allowed Kabr to forge the Aegis and seal the Vault in the first place. Standing with her to the end, Ghost agrees. In a flash of Light, Sapphire dies, and forms a hole through the field to the Blue Typhoon. Her spirit meets those aboard, and her body, gear, and the remains of the Vex, as well as her and Shadow's jumpships, are reformed into five Sparks of Light, which are given to Sonic, Knuckles, Amy, Tails, and Rouge, bestowing them with Guardians' armor and abilities. Maria takes them down to the surface, where they meet up with Shadow (the Vex retreated after Sapphire died). Not expecting to return, he took most of his arsenal with him, and distributes several weapons among the reluctant new Guardians. Standing together, they prepare to face the Vault of Glass.

Chapter 13- The Vault of Glass: Quick breakdown of the fireteam: Shadow, Gunslinger, generic scout rifle/Icebreaker. Sonic, Bladedancer, SUROS Regime. Knuckles, Striker, Thunderlord. Tails, Sunsinger, generic fusion rifle. Rouge, Voidwalker, Fatebringer. Amy, Defender, Universal Remote (this was written long before Sunbreaker existed).

The final chapter was a long showcase of the Vault of Glass. Originally, this story was a nonsensical one-shot of Team Dark and Team Rose taking it on, but I eventually wrote it out into this full story. This was the "predictable ending," and yes, I know a lot of stuff doesn't make sense. It was all just a means to an end. Anyways:

Having infiltrated the Axis Minds and receiving data from Kabr's memory fragment, the group knows how to enter the Vault of Glass, and vaguely knows what's inside. They begin by taking the Sync Plates in order to form the Spire. Shadow and Rouge take the center to provide covering fire for the others, Tails and Amy take left with weapons specialized for CQC, and Knuckles and Sonic take right. They struggle, but eventually manage to open the Vault. Once inside, they follow the trail to the Templar's Well. The first Conflux appears, and the group defends next two confluxes appear. Tails, Amy, and Knuckles defend the right conflux, and Shadow and Sonic defend the left. Shadow lends his Icebreaker to Rouge and has her provide covering fire. During this fight, Sonic is Marked by a Fanatic, and barely manages to be Cleansed before being unmade by the Templar's Ritual of Negation (after being tackled by Shadow). Then they're attacked by the Oracles. Their first defense against them falters, and the team is Marked. Rouge is forced from her sniping position to Cleanse with the rest of the team, and can't make it back up. The second wave of Oracles is summoned. Shadow splits the team up across the Arena, and they manage to hold off the wave. A third wave is summoned, and easily dealt with. Then the Templar disappears as the pool of light in the center forms into Kabr's Aegis. Shadow recalls Kabr's message about the shield, and claims it as the Templar appears. Shadow gradually learns how to use the shield, and the team fights back against the Templar. They learn to predict the Templar's movements, and how to prevent it. Tails is killed by the Templar while trying to prevent its teleport, but is able to self-revive using his Sunsinger abilities. Shadow has the team fall back to a defensible position after learning of the Aegis' cleansing capabilities, and they take position in an isolated ledge, well protected from the Templar. After a hard fight, Sonic spins through the Templar's eye, destroying it, but as its body explodes, a portal is opened which tears the Aegis out of Shadow's hands. They then make their way down to the Gorgon's Labyrinth, managing to sneak through it, but have to kill the last Gorgon after it detects them. They skip over a chasm with shifting blocks by having Tails and Rouge fly the other members over. They then reach the center of the Vault of Glass, where they confront and defeat the Gatekeeper. Shadow can detect the Light of the Aegis behind the Timegates, as well as the Darkness of the Precursor and Descendant Gatekeepers, and knows they must defeat it in order to summon Atheon. Sonic goes to the Past and Shadow goes to the Future, while the others keep the Gates active and defend the Conflux. Knuckles and Amy defend Shadow's portal, and Rouge and Tails defend Sonic's. Sonic takes out his Gatekeeper and retrieves the Aegis, but starts going blind. He defends himself from the Vex using its bubble, learning to cleanse himself with it, then sprints out. Shadow takes longer, as he gets pinned down by Hobgoblins and starts going blind before he kills his Gatekeeper. Outside, Amy and Knuckles are pushed back by a Praetorian, and the Timegate seals. With Sonic on the outside, he takes his Aegis and goes to defend a Conflux in the center platform while the others counter-attack the Praetorians, destroying them and opening the portal again. Shadow defends himself from the Vex, and manages to boost through the portal as soon as it opens. They all run to the Conflux and defend it until it dissipates (this fight has many more Vex, and is much more dramatic than in-game. Think the final scene from Age of Ultron). Both Aegis' merge into one, and fire a beam of light at the Conflux of Time. It then disappears, and the manifestation of Time's Conflux, Atheon, is summoned. Black Narcissus speaks to them through Atheon, claiming that they are only trying to delay the inevitable, and that the Vex will recreate time regardless. The Raid team fights back, but Atheon's brutal power forces them into cover. Then Atheon opens the Timestream, sending Sonic, Tails, and Amy into the past. Shadow can detect their light through the portal, and he, Knuckles, and Rouge set about opening the portal while Atheon is frozen and they're swarmed by Supplicants. The team on the other side begins fighting the Oracles as they remake time, and the portal opens just before they get killed. Once back in the Vault, the team once again focuses on Atheon, but he opens the Timestream again, this time sending Shadow, Sonic, and Knuckles to the Future. Unable to tell or guess where they are, the team still in the Vault is forced to open both Portals, spreading them thin and nearly getting overwhelmed, but the team on the other side manages to get back through, faster this time. They notice that they feel more powerful immediately after escaping, Shadow believes its because, as they destroy the Oracles, the Vex's grip on Time is loosened. They damage Atheon more seriously, and he opens the Timestream once more, sending Shadow, Amy, and Sonic to the future again. Rouge, Knuckles, and Tails blindly guess, and manage to open the correct portal one last time. The other side staggers back through, and they regroup in the center of the Vault. Atheon mocks them again, saying that he will claim the universe. Sonic rebuts this before passing the Aegis to Shadow, who puts up a field around them as Atheon opens fire. They fire back, but Shadow is growing weaker. Atheon/Black Narcissus says that their death has been foretold by the Oracles, and they cannot change their fate. Shadow is then supported by the spirits of Kabr and Sapphire, renewing his strength. He claims that they're Guardians, and they make their own fate, before using the shield to project a beam of pure Light at Atheon, severely crippling him and momentarily preventing him from opening the Timestream again. Taking advantage of this opportunity and empowered by "Time's Vengeance," the raid team charges him, beating him back to the Glass Throne inch by inch. Shadow drives the Aegis into Atheon's power core, causing it to plummet over the edge and into the abyss. The Conflux of Time is stopped, and Shadow is unconscious from Atheon's blast. The Conflux of Time then begins to collapse on itself. Trapped in the Vault, Sonic is able to take back the Chaos Emeralds, now that the Vex's control is dispelled, and uses Chaos Control to teleport them back to the Blue Typhoon. The Vault of Glass then permanently seals.

Chapter 14- (Atheon's) Epilogue: Sometime after the team returned home, the Vex have abandoned Sonic's world. In a small display of respect, Shadow takes Sapphire's cloak and helmet, and makes a grave for her, similar to Molly's. He has a private conversation with Maria, wondering if he can still stop the Collapse, and acknowledging that Black Narcissus is still within the Vex. She says she doesn't know if he can still change the future- perhaps the Collapse was predestination. She also suspects Black Narcissus could've been discovered and deleted by the Vex- they never returned to Sonic's world. They're interrupted by Sonic, whose sworn off firearms, but is still stronger thanks to his Guardian powers, asking for Shadow's help against Eggman. Still seeing it his obligation to fight and protect people, he joins him.


End file.
